Easter 3
“Jesus is the Real Deal”
Acts 4:8-12
8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to
them, “Rulers and elders of the people!
9 If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown
to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, 10 then know this, you and all
the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you
crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you
healed. He is ‘the stone you builders rejected,
which has become the capstone.’
12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no
other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”
Yesterday
the Houston Texans had the number one pick in the college football draft. Out of thousands and thousands of players, they
could pick anyone they wanted. And if
you could ask the gurus and experts who were in charge of making that decision,
they would tell you, “As we make this pick, we want someone who is the real
deal. We don’t want a player who seems like
he will be good but then turns out to be a dud against better competition. We don’t want someone who is very athletic
but not very smart. We don’t want someone
who is prone to injury. We don’t want
someone who is going to be in trouble with the law off the field. We want someone who is going to be a great
player for a long time. We want a
bona-fide, true and tested all-star. We
want a player who is the complete package.
We want a player who is the real deal.”
So
how do you go about finding the real deal?
You watch countless hours of football videotape (sounds boring, doesn’t
it?) and you analyze it to death. You
fuss and fret; you hem and haw. You
discuss and debate; and finally after months and months of endless research and
even more endless discussion, you make a decision and you hope you are right. And haven’t you heard the debate over the
past few months over this? Should they take
Vince Young? Reggie Bush? Someone else?
Who will be the best one? On and on
it went.
In
an effort to find the real deal, the Texans drafted a young man named Mario
Williams. The Texans drafted him because
they think Mario Williams is the real deal.
They think he will be an athletic, smart and fine football player, as
well as being an upstanding citizen for years and years to come. Some people agree. Some people don’t. The truth is that nobody knows for sure if Mr.
Williams will be the real deal or not, not the Texans and not anybody else. Only time will tell.
When
you are dealing with earthly things, and you are trying to uncover the real
deal – something certain, something guaranteed – it is very difficult because
things can change so fast. Earthly
things are so temporary.
But
we Christians know about someone else who is the real deal - guaranteed. We don’t have to hem and haw; we don’t have
to discuss and debate. We have the bona
fide, can’t-lose, real deal on our side.
I’m not talking about football; I’m talking eternal life. When you are talking eternal life, Jesus is
not a dud. He is not someone who seems
like he’ll be good but wilts when the rubber hits the road. There is no hemming and hawing; there is no
debate. Jesus is not going to fail in
any way, shape or form. Jesus is the
only God. Jesus is the only Savior. Jesus is the real deal. That is the message that Peter was getting
across to the Sanhedrin on a day almost 2,000 years ago.
Before
I read to you the Scripture verses describing what Peter said before the
Sanhedrin, allow me to give you some background leading up to this
confrontation. Peter and John had healed
a cripple who had never walked his entire life.
Everyone was amazed when they saw this 40-year-old former cripple
walking. Peter spoke up to the crowd and
said, “You people killed the author of life; and God raised him from the dead. He is alive, and it is in his name that this
man is able to walk. Therefore repent,
so that your sins may be wiped out and times of refreshing might come from the
LORD. The Scriptures tell us that the
number of Christians grew to over 5,000 men, plus who knows exactly how many
women and children. Many repented and
believed.
But
even though many repented and believed that day, not everyone was excited about
this miracle. The Sanhedrin – the same
group who hated Jesus and made certain he was killed brutally – were very
disturbed. They thought they had stamped
out the Jesus movement once and for all when they had crucified him. And now Jesus had risen! And not only that, his once-cowardly
followers were standing up, doing eye-catching miracles and proclaiming to all
who would listen that Jesus was alive. The
Jesus movement was not stamped out. It
wasn’t even slowed down - it was spreading like wildfire.
So
the Sanhedrin seized Peter and John and put them in jail until they could
decide what to do. What happened
next? Listen to our Scripture verses for
today and see. (read text)
Remember,
just a few months ago, when a meek slave girl said, “Aren’t you friends of
his?” Peter cowered in fear and said, “I don’t know the man!” But now, during a time of tension, with his
life on the line, when the same men who hated Jesus asked Peter, “By what power
or name did you do this miracle?” Peter didn’t say, “I don’t know.” He looked
them all in the eye and said clearly, “You crucified Jesus, but God raised him
to life. He is the one who did this
miracle.”
How
did Peter get such courage? The
Scripture tells us the reason. Verse 8
indicates that as Peter began to talk he was “filled with the Holy
Spirit.” There is a neat word picture
behind the Greek word translated as “filled.” The word could also mean,
“soaked.” This is the same word used to
describe the sponge that was soaked in vinegar and placed before Jesus’ lips on
the cross. It would be accurate to say
that Peter at this time was “soaked with the Holy Spirit.” Soaked like a sponge. Saturated with joy, brimming with confidence,
soaked with the Holy Spirit and completely convinced that Jesus was the real
deal Savior.
Look
at verse 12. Here is a verse that shows
that Jesus is the ONLY real deal around.
Salvation is found in no one else.
You will not find real salvation in Buddha. That ends up being a dud. You will not find real salvation in New Age
meditation exercises. That is a waste of
time. You will not find the real
salvation in yourself and living the right way.
That just makes you more miserable than before. Jesus is the real deal. Jesus brings real salvation. It isn’t a trick. It isn’t a mirage. Think about the facts. Jesus died on the cross. Jesus rose from the dead. Jesus has taken away all of our sins. Jesus has given us eternal forgiveness. Jesus has promised a trip to heaven. Jesus is the ONLY real deal. 12 Salvation is found in no one else, for
there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”
And
here is the best part about Jesus being the real deal. It had nothing to do with you. In earthly decisions you must debate and
wonder and second-guess yourself if you could have done better or not. The hemming and hawing can drive you
crazy! Well, the awesome part with Jesus
is this – the real deal found you. You
did not choose him; he chose you. You
never decided he was the real deal; instead he gently caused you to believe in
him.
I
mentioned earlier that we all have heard the debates about who the Texans
should have taken with their first draft pick.
And you know what? The debate is
not over. Not even close. Over the next few weeks, months, even years,
Mr. Williams will be scrutinized and compared with the other great players in
the draft picked by other teams. It will
be an endless debate. Did the Texans
make the right call or not? Everyone has
an opinion.
Isn’t
it nice to know that with your salvation on the line there is no debate? Isn’t it nice that in Jesus there is no
second-guessing? Isn’t it comforting
that in the most important sphere – your eternity – there is no worry
whatsoever? Jesus is the real deal. Jesus is the ONLY real deal. Amen.